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Having apparently learned little from all the privacy woes of the last year or so, Samsung is reportedly developing a service that records smartphone users’
actions and shares them with other apps.
The service is called “Context,” according to a report on The Information.
Beyond collecting keystrokes from users, the report says Context would also record what apps are used and even the data that a device’s sensors (camera,
microphone, etc.) pick up.
All that data would then be available for app developers to use to tailor app content to specific users.
Red flags Context may never actually make it onto devices, however, reportedly because Samsung is unsure whether it will actually help the company sell more phones.
In other words, Samsung can’t figure out whether users are interested in having their every action recorded, catalogued and exploited by developers.
In related news, The Information also dropped a new hint about a meeting that supposedly took place between Google and Samsung just a day before Google announced it would sell Motorola.
The two companies supposedly discussed the future of Android – specifically, how much freedom device makers will have to customize the operating system on future devices.
But the outcome of the meeting is unknown.
* At least the Samsung Galaxy S4 doesn’t record your every move. Click the link for TechRadar’s review.

A new year, another set of flagship handsets from the twin titans of smartphones,
Apple and Samsung -but will this finally be the year such devices can shake off the bezel in an effort to slim down even further?
The Korea Herald reported Tuesday that Samsung and Apple may face another rivalry in 2014 as speculation runs rampant the Galaxy S5 and iPhone 6 may each feature bezel-free, edge-to-edge displays.
Korean mobile giant Samsung Electronics appears likely to launch the initial offensive later this month when the manufacturer is expected to announce the Galaxy S5, which unnamed industry sources claim will be the model to finally ditch a hardware-based home button.
Samsung is also rumored to be following Apple into the fingerprint scanner market, which will reportedly be offered on the bottom left and right sides of the bezel-free screen.
Begone, home button Apple is also said to be testing a prototype of this year’s iPhone 6 with a larger, bezel-free display that could also move the Touch ID fingerprint scanner found on the iPhone 5S onto the actual display itself.
The eventual goal of both companies appears to be an edge-to-edge screen offering button-free fingerprint scanning from anywhere on the display, but “technological hurdles” remain that could delay such a feature until the second half of the year.
Now that Apple has staked out the early fall season for its smartphone launches,
that could give the iPhone maker an edge over Samsung, who is expected to begin selling the allegedly slimmer Galaxy S5 much earlier in the year.
Samsung is also reportedly hard at work on touch panels that would allow its Galaxy devices to be used even while wearing gloves, part of a bezel-free initiative launched in 2012 under the code names “Project B” and “Galaxy B.”
* It may have a bezel, but our Samsung Galaxy S4 review shows it’s still a fine handset!

The Samsung Galaxy S5 has a level of hype around it usually reserved for Apple products and a side effect of that is that there are enough rumors and leaks surrounding it to bury a small country.
The latest of these could be one of the most enlightening yet though, as there’s now an image of what appears to be the phone’s retail packaging.
That might not sound overly exciting, but it’s the back of the box – AKA the bit with all the specs listed. The image, which was sent to SamsungGalaxyS5.nl by an anonymous tipster, claims the phone has a 2.5GHz quad-core processor, 3GB of RAM,
a 5.25-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) Super AMOLED display, 20MP camera, 1080p video playback and recording and a 3000mAh battery.
The screen size and resolution match previous rumors and we’ve also heard previously that the Galaxy S5 might have a 2.5GHz quad-core processor and 3GB of RAM, so no real surprise there either.
Snap happy What’s more surprising is the 20MP camera, as earlier rumors pointed to a 16MP lens. While it can apparently only shoot 1080p video, which is slightly surprising given that the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 can shoot 4K video.
We’ve heard several possibly battery sizes in the past but the general consensus seems to be that it would be bigger than the one in the Samsung Galaxy S4, which this is, as the S4 has a 2600mAh juice pack.
Of course there’s no guarantee that these specs are the real deal. The image certainly looks like a Galaxy box, but it could just be a Photoshop of a Galaxy S4 one.
* The Galaxy S5 might make its way to MWC, but there’ll be plenty of other things to see too.

Samsung has traditionally showcased its latest Galaxy S smartphones at its own events instead of revealing them at industry events like Mobile World Congress.
If a teaser from the company is any indication, that may be changing this year.
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